IAP2 Hosted - Strategies for Addressing Opposition & Outrage In Public Participation

Course Summary:

Does this sound familiar?

• Are your projects failing to move forward because of public opposition?
• Are your staff regularly faced with an angry public at meetings?
• Is your organization perceived as untrustworthy or unresponsive?
• Is decision-making fraught with polarized viewpoints and stalled on how to move ahead?
• Does it feel like your relationship with the people you serve or interact with is all about us versus them?
• Is the media covering your every move – in negative, sensational ways?

Then you are in the right place!

The course is highly participatory, so come prepared to join in, share experiences and challenges and ask lots of questions!

In this course you will learn: 

• How to identify and assess the root causes of public frustration, anger, and outrage.

• Understand 12 factors and reasons for people’s reactions and be better able to predict and prevent public anger.
• Learn 6 strategies to prevent or reduce public outrage, to make room for more effective public engagement to take place.
• Specific tools & techniques for working with the angriest people.
• How to better understand stakeholder motivations and how past experience impacts present participation
• How to address barriers and resistance to trying new ways of engaging.
• How to engage meaningfully with value and empathy.
• How your attitude and behaviour impacts public anger, and how to show up more effectively.
• A new way of thinking about public outrage, and enhanced skills, knowledge and behaviours to apply in your next public engagement challenge.


In these challenging times of polarization and divide, this IAP2 course will give you strategies and behaviours to enhance quality outcomes, so you can work together with communities and stakeholders.

Course Delivery:

Online and hosted by IAP2 Canada. The course is offered in 4 blocks of 3 hours each with out of class work between some of the sessions.

Cancellation and Refund Policy

Outrage and Opposition Coaching Clinic:

There is a bonus 6-hour coaching session available post completion of IAP2 Strategies for Opposition & Outrage training. The coaching clinic is limited to 6 people.

Bring your own project or situation and identify a new approach to implement, with focused coaching and feedback from the trainer so you can navigate a new way forward for your challenging situation. Spots are limited for this coaching clinic and taking IAP2’s Strategies for Opposition and Outrage is a pre-requisite.

Learning Objectives:

• Take a controversial, volatile, emotional situation and find a way forward applying strategies, methods and leadership competencies
• Weigh consequences, trade-offs and risks of your approach and identify mitigation measures
• Consider how to gain leadership commitment to a new approach and create a business case for using an approach that improves performance and gets better results
• Identify and apply methods and messages that will build trust and relationships with your stakeholders and participants
• February 5 11am-5pm eastern

Our Licensed Trainers:

Steph Roy McCallum is a facilitator, coach, trainer and leader of the most difficult conversations of our lives, and the Chief Storm Rider at the Courageous Leadership Project. She is author of the recently released book Leading Together: How Brave, Honest Conversations Can Transform Our Lives, Organizations and Communities (available November 17, 2022). With her heart on her sleeve and a deep breath for courage, she wades into the messy, important, beautiful conversations that can bring us together - or tear us apart. Her work in conflict transformation has taken her to 5 continents, leading brave, honest conversations to solve the challenges in our lives, organizations and communities – together. Steph is a trained Co-Active Leadership coach, a Certified Professional Facilitator and a Certified NeuroTransformational Coach. She is an IAP2 Trainer, course developer and co-lead of curriculum development for the new IAP2 Global Learning Pathway being launched in 2023. Steph believes that brave, honest conversations are how we solve the challenges in our world, together.